Page 52 of The Spotted Cottage By the Sea
What would it be like to kiss Russell Westwood’s neck?
No, she wasn’t here for that! He wanted her to do his taxes. To help them with his budget.Notkiss his neck. He didn’t ask for that, and it would be bizarre for her to try.
Though it was a beautiful neck…
“I apologize for the mess,” he said, opening the door to the left of the stairs. “It’s not a room I use much, so I end up abandoning a lot of things in there and closing the door.”
“I understand,” she said with a laugh. “I do that to my finances, too.”
They walked in and Sheila ran a hand over the desk. It was covered in papers, piled on either side and scattered across the middle. A large computer screen sat in the center, dust collecting along the back. The wolf pictures were sequestered here, apparently, and the walls were covered with them.
“This is it.” He picked up a brown paper bag and handed it to her. “I’m really sorry it’s so messy. My last accountant told me I was a nightmare, but I still haven’t been able to change my ways.”
Sheila laughed and peered inside the bag. “That’s a lot of papers. Are you running a business from here or something?”
“No. People just send me everything in the mail and I throw it in the bag. Sometimes I don’t even open the envelopes.” He winced, rubbing the back of his neck. “Again, I will pay you fairly. I know what a mess this is.”
“I have to warn you, I bill by the hour, and my rate goes up on the island. Difficulty getting supplies and all. You understand.”
He smiled. “I do.” Russell stepped toward her and pulled a folder out of the bag. “These are my bank statements for the last four years.”
A chortled laugh escaped from her. “I don’t really need that to do your taxes. It seems like you’re really looking for someone to yell at you about how much money you spend.”
“Yes, yes, I am. It’s honestly embarrassing how much money I’ve lost. I need to know how quickly I’m burning through my savings. I need a budget.”
It seemed like the solution to low cash flow was easy for a big star. She shifted the weight of the bag in her hands. “Worst case scenario, you might have to call up your buddy Hank and do another movie.”
He was quiet for a moment. “I can’t do that.”
“Oh? Is that not how it works?”
“We don’t talk.” Russell shook his head. “And I’m not doing movies anymore.”
Sheila felt her shoulders drop. “Russell. If you really are burning through your savings, you can’t just not work anymore.”
“I can’t hear you,” he said with a dramatic sigh. “I’m asking for your help.”
“All right, all right!” Sheila laughed. “I’m helping you!”
Budgets were easy, as long as it wasn’t her own. She’d do what she could.
He tucked the folder back into the bag. “I’m trusting you, Wilde. You should know I don’t trust anyone. Except the wolves.”
“Ha, right.”
He cleared his throat. “It’s been – well, I should’ve told you last night. I’m just so used tonottelling people.”
She tilted her head. “Not telling people what?”
Russell sighed. “When Holly and I did that movie – that was the end. She and Hank…they got together. I didn’t know it at the time, but…”
His voice trailed off and the reality of what he was trying to say hit her, twisting her stomach up into her lungs.
Sheila let out a breath. “Russell. I’m so sorry. He was your best friend, wasn’t he?”
“One of them, yeah.” He scratched his eyebrow. “It’s in the past now. But when I say I trust you, I mean it, and I’m so glad to have met you. Really.”
There were moments when she was with him that she could forget who he was and enjoy the moment.
